The present invention relates to a horseshoe that includes a basis profile of a body which is provided with holes for nails, a wearing plate with means for attachment to the basis profile, as well as wearing soles with means for attachment to the basis profile and the wearing plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 646,029 discloses a horseshoe of this type in which a basis profile is provided with a wearing plate and shock-absorbing wearing soles which are fixed to the basis profile. The disadvantage of this horseshoe is that, due to the insufficient thickness of the material of the basis profile, there is a substantial risk for cracks appearing around the nail-receiving holes because of the notch effect which the nail holes provide. Furthermore, the screws which are used for fixation of the wearing plate and the wearing soles are exposed to hard wear, and consequently these cannot be unscrewed when the wearing plate or the wearing sales have to be replaced.
DK publication No. 157,520 discloses a horseshoe in which the problem with hard wearing of the fixation means is remidied by means of simple tenon and hole mechanisms. The wearing plate and the shock-absorbing wearing soles are constituted as one single unit as the wearing soles extend as one single wearing sole along the entire basis profile and the wearing plate is embedded in the wearing sole which is manufactured from plastics. Therefore, these parts cannot be individually replaced. Furthermore, a substantial risk for cracks appearing around the nail-receiving holes also exist because the basis profile is manufactured of a plate having an insufficient thickness of material and thus it does not have a sufficient strength around the nail-receiving holes.
A primary disadvantage in the known prior art is that the horseshoe does not possess sufficiently flexibility regarding the individual adjustment of the basis profile to the geometry of the individual hoof. The adjustment of the prior art horseshoes will cause a great risk that the fixation devices between the basis profile, the wearing sole and the wearing plate, respectively, will change size, thus the fixation is weakened. This may cause that the wearing sole and the wearing plate art 34 to become disconnected and lost during daily use.
A secondary disadvantage by this prior art is that the horseshoes do not possess sufficiently flexibility regarding replacement of the individual parts which are exposed to dally hard wear. The wearing arises in the nail-receiving holes in which the nails pass through the basis profile, on the wearing plate as well as on the wearing soles. The wearing of these parts may differ with different time intervals depending on the individual horse and depending on for which riding activity the horse is used.
It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide a horseshoe in which the adjustment of different hoof geometries is possible and wherein the wearing parts may be individually replaced replaced-thus the number of replacements of the basis profile is minimized.